Action
by SiLENT-masque
Summary: "Actions speak louder than words." - English proverb; AKA the time Hiroto and Midorikawa took turns at comforting each other. Go-era.


"They say that you'll catch your death in a rain like this."

The cemetery is dark, filled with rainclouds and tombstones and them. Just the two of them. One, kneeling on the ground, eyes and hands on the tombstone in front of him, the other standing on the pathway, umbrella cocked lazily over a shoulder.

"I know. I just had to pay my respects." He still doesn't move, running his thumb gently over the engraving. _Kira Seijirou_.

"Hiroto…" He doesn't look up when Midorikawa shields him from the cold rain with his umbrella. He doesn't look up when Midorikawa crouches down next to him, one hand on Hiroto's shoulder, the other holding the umbrella over both of their heads.

"Ne, Hiroto, we all miss him, you–"

"I know."

Midorikawa's voice falters, mouth opening, but for the first time in his life…nothing comes out. He wants to…he wants to comfort Hiroto, yes, but…how? Words have failed him. He can't even find his voice. All of his clever sayings and carefully crafted words, gone. All of it is useless, abandoning him when he really needs them. The only thing he can do is stare despondently at the tombstone with the redhead, grip tightening on his shoulder.

"We didn't…didn't even get to say goodbye."

Hearing Hiroto's voice crack breaks Midorikawa's heart for what feels like the billionth time that week. The worst part is that nothing still comes to mind. He bites his lip, running through all the possibilities of things he can say. Right now, he'd settle for anything, anything at all.

"We're all here for you, Hiroto."

Okay, so maybe not anything at all. They're words. But they're not good enough. They need to be better. They need to be better because the only thing response he can get out of Hiroto is "I know". Anything he says is meaningless unless it gets a response. It's not good enough, nothing he ever does is good enough. Midorikawa grits his teeth, trying to keep his fingers from digging into Hiroto's shoulder. That's the last thing Hiroto needs right now.

"I know.

That's when Midorikawa just can't take it. He throws his arms around the other, burying his head in his shoulder. It's enough to knock them both over, but Midorikawa _cherishes_ the look of surprise written across Hiroto's face, because it's something other than the sadness and the guilt that's been there for the entire week.

"I know that it hurts. I know that it hurts so much, Hiroto. But it's not your fault and you need to stop beating yourself up over something you had no control over in the first place. Nothing I say will ever be able to make it better because nothing I say can ever make anything better, I…I just…" the words tumble out before he can stop them, before he even knows what he's saying. He's pretty certain that most of them were lost to Hiroto's shoulder because he doesn't pull his head up out of Hiroto's shoulder until the very end. It doesn't matter what he said before. He's already forgotten what he said before.

He's said words, but now nothing comes to mind. They've abandoned him, yet again.

He doesn't even know how to continue his sentence anymore. For all his eloquence, he can't tell Hiroto what he really wants to say. All of the feelings bubbling up inside of him mean nothing if he can't express them. And how do you express things without using words?

"Ryuuji, please don't cry, I'm sorry."

There's a hand on his back and a hand carefully undoing his meticulously done up hair and he doesn't even realize that he's shaking and sobbing until Hiroto kisses his tears away gently (tears or rain at this point they're the same) and whispers the comforting words that he couldn't come up with.

"I can't…I can't…the words. Nothing is coming out right, I just…I just want you to feel better," he finishes lamely, clinging even tighter to Hiroto because he can't face Hiroto, doesn't want to face Hiroto.

"It's okay, it's okay, Ryuuji! You don't need any words," Hiroto whispers into his ears, calmly running a hand through his hair. The words still don't come; he's still trying to get his breathing back to normal and stop the pathetic little hiccups that keep escaping.

He was the one trying to do the comforting. Since when did he become the one who had to be comforted?

"Do you remember the saying you once told me, Ryuuji?"

"…I tell you a lot of sayings," he replies slowly, hesitantly. His head is still resting on Hiroto's shoulder and he doesn't know if he want to move it any time soon because for everything that's wrong right now, it feels right to be this close to Hiroto - close enough that he can feel his heartbeat, close enough that he can feel Hiroto's warmth through their soaking wet clothes and it's all enough to make him not care.

"Mm, but this one was special." The hand in his hair pauses its stroking to turn Midorikawa towards him. And Midorikawa realizes how much me missed having them look so alive and bright, because Hiroto is just so beautiful when his eyes are all lit up.

"Why was it so special, then?" he murmurs, idly moving a hand to twine with Hiroto's. Hiroto just smiles at him and the only thing Midorikawa can do in reply is grin softly right back.

It doesn't matter where they are. It'll never matter where they are. As long as they're together and…no, no ands. They just have to be together and Midorikawa is happy.

"Because I get to say it to you!" and hearing Hiroto's laugh again is like music. "Mm, but no. It's special because I remembered it and now I get to say it to you to make you feel better." Hiroto pulls their twined hands up to his lips, kissing the silver band that adorned his ring finger. "…after all, I want to return the favor for all those times you've done the same for me."

"Hiroto, just tell me what it is already, gosh!" Midorikawa says, shoving him lightly in the shoulder before hunkering down again into Hiroto's shoulder, blushing. Always leave it to Hiroto to draw things out.

"Midori, you don't need words. Remember, actions speak louder than words?" Hiroto says, laughing yet again as he pulls Midorikawa closer. "You told me that the–"

"The day that you proposed and you got nervous and started stuttering and fumbling all over your words and I was trying to get you to calm down, so you just got down on one knee and pulled out the box…"

"And you just started crying and just knocked me over and never actually gave me a real answer?" Hiroto says, and Midorikawa's face just gets redder and hides his face even further into Hiroto's shoulder. Hiroto never tires of that story, but that's only because he's not the one who makes a fool of himself.

"But, my point is that, you didn't even need to say anything. I knew how much you loved me and just wanted me to be okay just by being here with me and standing by me. And, yes, making me fall over, too," he explains softly, rolling them over so they're more face-to-face and lying together on the ground.

It's still raining and they're going to have mud everywhere and they're still in the cemetery, but Hiroto still tilts Midorikawa's head up and kisses him slowly, languidly. (The thought that maybe this is not a great place to kiss crosses his mind all of once, but then Hiroto kisses him again and he doesn't give a damn about where they are; it's too perfect being here, right now.)

They don't leave the cemetery until Hiroto finally reminds them that they have somewhere to be, and by that point, they're tangled, wet, and maybe just a little bit giddy.

(Midorikawa is the one who ends up getting sick in the end. And for all he complains that it's Hiroto's fault and occasionally throws tissue boxes at him, he still murmurs every night, without fail, how happy he is that they got married. Hiroto responds in kind and kisses him on the forehead, telling him to go to sleep because he needs to get better. Midorikawa just looks at him annoyed, but curls up next to Hiroto to sleep nonetheless.)**  
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**A/N ;; **I hope you enjoyed this! It took me awhile, considering how short it is. There's a second fic coming up - soon I hope!


End file.
